On the other hand, being conservative and making half-assed efforts has resulted in more financial failures (3IS/4GS) than going all out and spare no effort (see the resurgence of MB). That will change with the introduction of TNGA, since the cost reduction benefit it brings gives them more maneuverability in project execution. When things are doing okay, they make better and exciting products, as shown by their recent efforts with Camry, Auris, and RAV4. When things go wrong, they can always revert back to making cheap appliances at reduced cost.
I really appreciate your well-worded and classy response. My issue is to what I quoted above, and the thing I have made in bold. I'll be honest, I haven't thought much in regards to the greater picture. However, my post to which I vented is with that. I tried to dance around that word without being fully out of line. And hey, while I agree with your statement, don't you genuinely think, after all that trying to save every penny, don't you think they cannot build serious cars anymore? For example, the Supra for a multitude of reasons was cancelled back in 98' (2000 for Japan), after selling less cars with sporting credentials, they moved on to building appliances. Whether it has been cars, trucks or SUV's, they saved money at a time where it was necessary. Now they are firing back with a new Supra, a new 86, and I wouldn't be surprised something else either in terms of pure sports cars. I will not delve into the new TNGA cars because we already know how much better they are than before.
It is so hard trying to wait for a great product, and yet you're let down? I have been so adamant on purchasing an amazing Lexus, yet I get so triggered again because it is so obvious where they are cost-cutting.
My patience is dwindling a little. Mostly because how Toyota and Lexus keep everything under wraps. The notion how their loyal/potential/future customers are left in the dark in regards to what is coming up in the pipeline in the future. Think of it like this, you have been waiting for a new product, a better product, a less "
quoted what you said-effort" product than the previous generation, then you see an amazing reveal, in which you cannot wait to jump behind the wheel, but yet they manage to cut costs in areas that just shock you.
I will be honest, with the LS, LX and the LC (partially the UX), there is no evidence of cost-cutting whatsoever. There are certain expectations when you jump behind a Lexus and those three cars fully embody that philosophy. They simply just mess it up everything below their flagship models. For example, the IS has the most cramped room for a sedan, ever. How about the interiors of the RC/IS? While it blows everyone else out of the water in terms of quality, the dashboard and the controls look so much in the 90's. However since I am more inclined towards quality, I wouldn't mind purchasing one over their rivals because their cars are just that good. What about the RC? The joint 3 chassis platform? It made the RC a total mess, the only benefit to that is you use the RC as a genuine grand tourer and not like a sports car, also it is an excellent product in leaving the driver in isolation, which is a Lexus hallmark quality. Now I won't talk about their transmissions, because their 10-speed easily made me forgive them. But for example, the 8-speed automatic in the GS-F was extremely fast, but gearing was the issue. Why in the world does an almost 500 horsepower RWD V8 sports sedan have long long long gears? Fuel economy. You tell me if that is ridiculous or not.
Here's the thing, I am so freaking passionate about TMC because they're the only ones that are trying to stay true to themselves and still try to appeal new customers. It is these things that I mentioned above that can easily mess them up and shoo away future customers. They need to follow Mercedes-Benz's playbook because they are a hit right now, and there is no reason Lexus cannot be up with them too? Remember when all manufacturers were having a bloodbath to catch up to Lexus back in the past? That's where I want them to be. There is no way they cannot end up on the sharp end of the pyramid again. Once they do, I will be proud to say Lexus is back. The LS has amazing sales on its first month, for a flagship car, that is so many sales. The LC, yes it is more of a niche product than the LS, but it sold relatively well compared to other flagship coupes. The GX, which suddenly had a resurgence in sales for some reason. These cars are proof that Lexus is clearly doing something right. It won't be that hard for them to do that to their other models. Expensive, yes. But TNGA should alleviate most of that problem.
, i mean in volume of production. They still cant produce enough NX, RX-L is in short supply and UX will certainly be in short supply worldwide.
